A Pair of Aces by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

Eunice Carter, assistant district attorney for the City of New York and Manhattan’s first Black female prosecutor, has her sights set on the one and only Lucky Luciano, head of New York City’s five largest organized crime families. Other prosecutors have tried to bring down Lucky, but they’ve all focused on the crime syndicate’s traditional businesses—bootlegging, gambling, loan sharking, and drug dealing—or tax evasion. No one has thought to approach the mob through its hand in prostitution. Until Eunice. But she can’t get Luciano alone.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

June 2026; Berkley; 978-0593637937
audio, ebook, print (400 pages); biographical fiction

I love reading about pieces of history that I know little about. I love it even more when it features women who have largely been overlooked by history. And the top of the cake - I absolutely love it when it is a well-written, engaging story. 

Marie Benedict's A Pair of Aces has all three. I know very little about the mob in the 1930s. I've never heard of Eunice Cater or Polly Adler. Having read two previous books by Benedict, I knew I was in for a great story.

Benedict wrote this with Victoria Christopher Murray. I'm not familiar with her but she has written several books.

It made me think of The Untouchables that I watched as a kid. (I'm pretty sure it was the 1950s television show and not the 1980s movie as it was rated R). It is about Eliot Ness and set during Prohibition. 

In A Pair of Aces, Prohibition has ended, but the organized crime that took hold during that time is still thriving. U.S. District Attorney Thomas Dewey has established a special task force to take down the top bosses. One member of the team was Eunice Carter, a black woman. This is 1935. 

She wasn't just a "diversity hire". She made the case that led to the conviction of Charles "Lucky" Luciano. She was able to develop a rapport with the girls that none of the male prosecutors could. Dewey didn't even want to consider prostitution as a means of getting a conviction.

I liked that Benedict provided a historical note at the end detailing what changes she had to make to the historical record. 

The story is engaging. It is told in alternating POVs - Eunice Carter and Polly Adler. This provided the readers with both sides of the story. Both the case that the DA's office was building and what was actually happening on the ground. I like getting the big picture view since I knew so little about these events.

If you liked books such as Hidden Figures, then you should definitely add this book to your reading list.

Buy A Pair of Aces at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

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